SADC Leather Forum: Member States Commit to Regional Value Chain Integration
LW Desk
Member states of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have renewed their commitment to building a more integrated regional leather industry, following the second SADC Regional Leather Forum held in Durban on 23–24 July 2026.
Backed by German Cooperation, the two-day gathering brought together government officials, development partners, private sector players and other stakeholders to chart a path toward greater value addition and competitiveness across the region's leather sector.
Delegates agreed that unlocking the industry's potential requires coordinated action rather than country by country efforts, calling for more knowledge-sharing and stronger regional coordination to leverage each nation's strengths.
Opening the Forum, Ms. Dimakatso Moji of South Africa's Department of Trade, Industry and Competition urged member states to move past fragmented national strategies toward a unified, competitive value chain. She pointed to the need for specialization based on national strengths, better use of idle production capacity, and the creation of regional industrial clusters.
She also reviewed progress since the 2023 adoption of the SADC Leather Regional Model Policy Framework in Luanda, noting that Malawi, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe have already drawn up national strategic plans, with the DRC and Mozambique close behind.
Calicious Tutalife of the SADC Secretariat described the Forum as a turning point in moving the Framework from policy into national action, stressing the need to link producers, tanneries, manufacturers and investors more effectively. He said findings from the Forum would feed into the 2027 Ministerial Task Force on Regional Economic Integration.
Representatives from GIZ's CESARE program and the SADC Business Council reaffirmed their support for the sector, pledging continued investment in business linkages and market development.
The Forum closed with stakeholders committing to accelerate implementation of the regional leather agenda through stronger partnerships, policy alignment and investment promotion.
